heavy 4-weight M&L 1 heifers$289.87/cwt+4.43 vs last sale · ≈ $1,388/hd at 479 lb · 201 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 steers$313.41/cwt+17.81 vs last sale · ≈ $1,644/hd at 525 lb · 165 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 steers$320.51/cwt+13.84 vs last sale · ≈ $1,531/hd at 478 lb · 102 head
Receipts
Head
This sale
Last sale
Last year
Total receipts
2,656
1,960
1,815
Feeder cattle
1,709
1,020
1,444
Slaughter cattle
663
502
346
Replacement cattle
284
438
25
Market comments — USDA reporter
Compared to last sale: Feeder steers under 450 lbs sold steady to 10.00 lower on a lower quality offering, steers over 450 lbs sold mostly 10.00-15.00 higher, with instances of 20.00 higher seen on some high quality offerings. Heifer calves under 550 lbs sold mostly 5.00-7.00 higher, heifers over 550 lbs were not well compared, however demand for this weight of heifers was much better this sale as both replacement buyers and grass cattle buyers competed over offerings. Buyers were buying a heavier weight of feeders to send to grass as they purchased steers up to 650 lbs and heifers up to 600 lbs for that purpose. Quality this week was mostly average to attractive. Most cattle were weaned 45-90 days, with a limited offering of calves straight off the cows. Calves straight off the cow were mostly very high quality and buyers showed good demand despite the fact they were not weaned. Package sizes were mostly moderate this week with one load lot seen. Demand for todays single load lot was very good. CME positions have seen slight gains since the last sale in December. The January contract closed today at 223.775 while the March closed at 224.875. Market activity was mostly active this week with a large buyer pool noticed. Weigh up cows sold on mostly moderate to good demand for moderate offerings. Demand for cows was mostly light to start the sale but improved as additional buyers entered the market. Demand for slaughter cows was light to moderate this week. Breaking slaughter cows sold mostly 5.00-7.00 higher, boning slaughter cows sold generally steady, lean slaughter cows sold mostly 2.00 higher. Most of the cow offering returned to feed this week as both packers and private buyers both purchased cows to feed this week. High quality feeding cows, suitable to feed to premium white sold mostly steady to 2.00 higher. Thin feeding or turn out cows sold steady to 3.00 higher. Slaughter bulls sold mostly steady to 2.00 lower in a narrow comparison. Weigh up conditions were mixed this week. Young age cows sold on mostly moderate to good demand this week. More interest was seen for this class of cows as additional buyers were in the market looking for rebreed quality cows. Quality this week was mostly average. This class of cows sold mostly steady to 5.00 higher.
USDA feeder grades describe frame size and muscle thickness, not quality of
the individual animal. "Medium and Large" is the frame score; the number is
muscle (1 = heaviest muscled). "Medium and Large 1–2" pens mix both muscle
scores — common across the Southeast.
What is $/cwt?
Dollars per hundredweight — per 100 lb of animal. A 500-lb calf at
$450/cwt brings 5 × $450 = $2,250. Lighter cattle usually bring more per
cwt but less per head.
Why are some prices per head?
Bred cows, cow-calf pairs, and some replacement classes sell by the
head, not by weight. We show those exactly as USDA reports them — a
$/head figure is never converted into $/cwt on this site.
Where do these numbers come from?
From the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service's Livestock Market News —
federal reporters at the sale. We publish each report in full and link the
official USDA document at the top of the page.
Cattle Market
Compared to last sale: Feeder steers under 450 lbs sold steady to 10.00 lower on a lower quality offering, steers over 450 lbs sold mostly 10.00-15.00 higher, with instances of 20.00 higher seen on some high quality offerings. Heifer calves under 550 lbs sold mostly 5.00-7.00 higher, heifers over 550 lbs were not well compared, however demand for this weight of heifers was much better this sale as both replacement buyers and grass cattle buyers competed over offerings. Buyers were buying a heavier weight of feeders to send to grass as they purchased steers up to 650 lbs and heifers up to 600 lbs for that purpose. Quality this week was mostly average to attractive. Most cattle were weaned 45-90 days, with a limited offering of calves straight off the cows. Calves straight off the cow were mostly very high quality and buyers showed good demand despite the fact they were not weaned. Package sizes were mostly moderate this week with one load lot seen. Demand for todays single load lot was very good. CME positions have seen slight gains since the last sale in December. The January contract closed today at 223.775 while the March closed at 224.875. Market activity was mostly active this week with a large buyer pool noticed. Weigh up cows sold on mostly moderate to good demand for moderate offerings. Demand for cows was mostly light to start the sale but improved as additional buyers entered the market. Demand for slaughter cows was light to moderate this week. Breaking slaughter cows sold mostly 5.00-7.00 higher, boning slaughter cows sold generally steady, lean slaughter cows sold mostly 2.00 higher. Most of the cow offering returned to feed this week as both packers and private buyers both purchased cows to feed this week. High quality feeding cows, suitable to feed to premium white sold mostly steady to 2.00 higher. Thin feeding or turn out cows sold steady to 3.00 higher. Slaughter bulls sold mostly steady to 2.00 lower in a narrow comparison. Weigh up conditions were mixed this week. Young age cows sold on mostly moderate to good demand this week. More interest was seen for this class of cows as additional buyers were in the market looking for rebreed quality cows. Quality this week was mostly average. This class of cows sold mostly steady to 5.00 higher.